Ruth

During the time of the Judges there was a famine in the land of Israel. As a result, a man named Elimelech from Bethlehem departs for the nearby country of Moab, southeast of Israel in present-day Jordan. He brings with him his wife, Naomi, and two sons, Mahlon and Chilion. While in Moab, Elimelech and then his two sons die. Before their death, the sons marry two Moabite women, Ruth and Orpah. Destitute, Naomi returns to her home town Bethlehem to commence the life of a poor widow. Despite Naomi’s plea for both her daughter’s-in-law to remain in Moab, Ruth vows loyalty to Naomi and returns with her to Israel. Once in Bethlehem, Ruth’s life takes an unexpected turn, going from a poor widow scavenging in the fields to the wife of a wealthy land owner and eventually, great-grandmother of King David.

Q: Enter question one?

A: Here is the answer to question one.

Q: Enter question two?

A: Here is the answer to question two.

And lo a voice from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.
Matthew 3:17

The book of Ruth is of course a love story. But it is more than that. It makes a point about the role of Gentiles (non-Jews) in the purpose of God and in the royal line of Israel, and it tells the back-story of the ancestry of David.

Like all historical accounts in the Bible, the story of Ruth is symbolic as well as being a factual account of real events. The journey of Ruth from a Gentile land and eventual adoption into the family of Israel is an acted out parable. Ruth can be seem as symbolic of the church and Boaz acts out the role of the savior. The book also helps fill in some details about the family tree of David and provides a glimpse into everyday life during the time of the Judges. It demonstrates that the Mosaic Law was practically applied by many in Israel.

Since Ruth takes place during the period of the Judges of Israel, the historical backgound to the book should be compared to that of Judges. The ease in which the story of Ruth fits into the period that is described in Judges is unmistakable. Ruth’s Israel was an agrarian community, with legal matters worked out by elders at the local town or village level.

The story of Ruth takes place in the time of the Judges so the Book of Judges provides important context to the book. Since Ruth is only four generations removed from David, his life and times captured in 1 Samuel and 1 Chronicles are also relevant.

A rough breakdown of the book:

Ruth and Naomi return from Moab to Bethlehem (ch 1)

Ruth works in Boaz's field (ch 2)

Ruth at the threshingfloor (ch 3)

Boaz marries Ruth and they have children (ch 4)

Coming soon!

Ruth is much more than a charming love story. It is both an accurate historical account and an acted-out parable. The kind, devoted, yet destitute Ruth is part of a continuing theme in the Bible of the "bride of Christ" while the "savior" ante-type in the story is Boaz. The emphasis in the text on the “redeemer” role that Boaz plays according to the Mosaic Law is not randomly inserted information, but critical to interpreting the symbolism in the book. No accident, then, that Boaz stands in the line of David and the Lord Jesus.